Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Comment on this quote Share via Email Print this Page Famous The Mahabharata Quote “This is the sum of all true righteousness: deal with others as thou wouldst thyself be dealt by. Do nothing to thy neighbor which thou wouldst not have him do to thee hereafter.” ~ The Mahabharata Hindu epic poem, circa 800 BCE Happiness , Proverbs , Religion , Responsibility , Spirituality , Truth , Wisdom Ratings and Comments Reply Manu, Bagalkot 12/26/05 Reply Anonymous, Reston, VA US 12/26/05 While the sentiment is nice, the detail is backwards (as it is in the "Golden Rule" too)... better is to "do unto others as they would have you do unto them"... 1 Reply E Archer, NYC Anonymous, Reston, VA US 1/7/19 Interesting distinction, but as I know how I would like to be treated, I do not necessarily know what others would like. So I start there. And if how another would like to be treated also follows the same Golden Rule, then OK. But what about when others tell you how you MUST treat them, no matter what, then sorry, NO. It doesn't work that way. Does the other person ever have to consider what I would like, or must I always acquiesce to others? 1 Reply Bob, Eugene, OR 12/26/05 Too bad all relgions can't just leave it at that. Reply Dick, Fort Worth 12/26/05 Confucianism states the Golden Rule in a reverse fashion from that of Christianity and maybe another religion or two, but this one actually states the Rule both ways. It is the only one to do that. Reply Robert, Sarasota 12/27/05 It is so simple yet so elusive... If practiced by the world it would be our second giant leap. Also, this means all things not just human Reply Kathy, Pennsylvania 12/29/05 It is interesting to note the Common Law was based on this saying (and others like it): " Do all you have agreed to do, and do not encroach on other persons or their property." It makes civilization possible. We used to have a government of common law. Now it is just political law. Read "Whatever Happened to Justice" by Richard Maybury. Reply louise, austria 11/7/07 it is basically about don't do to others what you do not want doing back to you Reply Seth, Ft. Worth 10/18/09 How eloquent Reply Balasooryan, Kerala. 4/17/10 Exact meaning of DHARMA Reply Anonymous, Kolkata 8/10/10 "do unto others as they would have you do unto them"... This is not possible bcoz u can never know waht "would have you do unto them" You can only know "what you would have them do unto you" Reply jim k, Austin, Tx 1/1/14 Bob, Eugene Oregon, you said it well. Reply watchman 13, USA 1/1/14 Love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor. 1st works. You can leave the word religion out Bob, and just go with everybody. Reply Mike, Norwalk 1/2/14 Reply Al, DC 1/2/14 1 Reply E Archer, NYC 1/5/14 Good point, Dick. The first sentence is the Golden Rule, the second is upon which Law is based. Switch the first to Law and the second to merely a Rule and you have tyranny. 1 Reply Dalton, Trinidad & Tobago 1/6/14 This is basic human thinking if you want to fulfill your purpose on earth. Happiness, Freedom and Peace of mind it is said, can only be attained by giving same to others. In other words selflessness is the passage to nirvana. 1 Reply jim k, Austin 1/4/19 The essence of this is to be kind to people, and also animals. And Bob, Eugene Oregon, is still right . SaveOk2 SaveOk2 View CommentsClick to view or comment. Share on Facebook Tweet Email Print This The Mahabharata quote is found in these categories: Happiness quotes Proverbs quotes Religion quotes Responsibility quotes Spirituality quotes Truth quotes Wisdom quotes About The Mahabharata Bio of The Mahabharata Quotations by The Mahabharata Books by/about The Mahabharata The Mahabharata videos The Mahabharata on Wikipedia Astrological chart for The Mahabharata